AUGUSTA, Maine — As of earlier this year, there were 3455 Maine people experiencing homelessness, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Some members of the Maine Legislature want to get as many of those Mainers housed as possible and are proposing a bill that aims to do just that.
"This bill brings a number of concepts together," Rep. Drew Gattine, D-Westbrook, said.
Gattine has sponsored several housing bills during his time in the Legislature and now sits on the new housing committee. He told NEWS CENTER Maine that it's not just housing that people need, but services like substance use disorder treatment or employment resources.
"The important piece of what this bill does is it provides exactly those kinds of services, and it makes those services available onsite," Gattine added.
The bill called An Act to Address Maine's Housing Crisis is being presented by Speaker Rachel Talbot Ross. She testified to the committee Tuesday but declined to speak to us on camera.
Other than Talbot Ross, the room was full of Mainers who testified in favor of the bill.
"A lot of my work right now is working with lived experience advocates," Rebekah Lane of the Good Shephard Food Bank said.
Lane said she and her family spent about three months without a home. Now as she works at Good Shepherd, she said food insecurity and homelessness go hand in hand.
She is advocating for people just like her to have a voice and learn how to talk to lawmakers.
"I help them through those moments to learn the ways their voice can impact the bigger conversation, and I make sure and advocate for them to be at the table in all of these important issues," she added.
The housing-first model is already being used in Portland. The proposed bill would pay for more housing first locations as well as the services that go with them.